Here is the latest from CalFire on the Center Fire in the Eastern Sierra town of Big Pine California and another video of the fire. You can really feel the wind in this one.

• Acres Burned: 1200
• Containment: 1,200 acres – 35% contained.
  Full containment expected on Sunday 3/20
• Structures Destroyed: Estimated 19 residences damaged or destroyed
  100 more are still threatened
• Evacuations: Mandatory evacuations are in place at the following areas:
  • Everything west of West St in Big Pine
  • All other evacuations have been lifted
  • Evacuation centers have been set up at the Big Pine High School and Big Pine Indian Reservation gym.
• Cause: Under investigation
• Conditions: Yesterday the fire grew rapidly as it was fanned by extremely strong winds, but last night and this morning the winds have diminished and the area has received light rain.
  Highway 395 is back open in both directions.
  The public can call 760-937-1686 to locate displaced residents.

For more information visit this link at CalFire: http://cdfdata.fire.ca.gov/incidents/incidents_details_info?incident_id=482

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A wildfire is currently burning in the Eastern Sierra town of Big Pine. The latest information I can find puts the fire at 2000 acres burned with at least 12 homes destroyed. US 395 was closed for a time yesterday as winds 20 -30 mph with gust up to 50 mph caused the fire to jump the highway. As of 12:30 this morning Hwy 395 was reopened but northbound and southbound traffic was being escorted by CHP and CalTrans through the burn area. The cause of the fire is currently unknown.

More high winds are forecast today in the Owens Valley. A Wind Advisory and High Wind Watch are currently issued for the area. The storm that’s moving into the Sierra Nevada today will bring a 30% chance of rain to the valley. Hopefully humidity levels will go up and help the firefighters fighting this blaze.

Here is some video that was posted on YouTube showing the fire burning from Hwy 395.

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One of the places I really wanted to visit on our recent trip to Bishop was Pine Creek Canyon. Pine Creek has always been a special place for me, whether I was fishing the creek, looking for big horn sheep on the cliffs, or just taking a drive into the mountains, it’s a wonderful canyon with plenty of beautiful sights and lots of Sierra magic.

Unfortunately, when I left the Eastern Sierra, Pine Creek was a negative part of my soul. It was the last place Tammy and I took a drive together, and it turned out to not be a good experience for her. I won’t go into any details, but I’ve often wondered if that drive played a roll in her getting the infection that put her into the hospital and eventually caused her death. I’ve told myself many times that it didn’t, but I sometimes still wonder.

After Tammy passed away and before I moved to Wisconsin, I never drove back up Pine Creek, I just couldn’t do it. When Lynne and I came to California in 2009 I thought about going up there, but still couldn’t bring myself to do it. On this years trip though, something inside of me had changed and I was ready to head back to one of my favorite places. I needed to make Pine Creek positive again and bring back all of the great memories of the canyon.

So on Saturday morning, Lynne and I headed up there. What beauty we encountered, beginning with the deer in Rovana and the lower part of the canyon, and finishing with beautiful light shining on the peaks.

Pine Creek is now a bright spot on my soul again.

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As I mentioned in my earlier post, we spent our first full day in the Eastern Sierra up in Mammoth with mom. While we were visiting Mammoth Mtn Ski Area, we decided to take a scenic gondola ride to the top of the mountain. While I had been to the top a number of times, this was a first for Lynne and mom. We all had a great time riding the gondola up and then eating lunch at the top. For all of the years that mom has lived in Bishop and visited Mammoth, she had never been to the ski area, let alone the top of the mountain. This was a real treat for her.

If you’ve never been to the top of Mammoth Mtn, do it when you get the chance. It’s well worth the twenty bucks. The views from the top and on the ride up and back are awesome. The previous times I was up there I didn’t have a camera with me, so it was fun taking pictures this time.

Here are a few of the shots I took that day. The first three were taken from the top, the next three from the gondola car.

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